PREPARING FOR RURAL PRACTICE - ENHANCED EXPERIENCE FOR MEDICAL-STUDENTS AND RESIDENTS

PROBLEM ADDRESSED Recruitment and retention of physicians appropriatel y trained for rural practice in Canada continues to be a serious chall enge. We describe three integrated educational programs at the Univers ity of Alberta that aim to increase students' and residents' participa tion in rural health care and encourage them to take up practice in ru ral areas. OBJECTIVES OF PROGRAM To expand and enrich rural educationa l experiences at undergraduate and postgraduate levels and to suppleme nt family medicine postgraduate education with a third-year special-sk ills program for rural practice. MAIN COMPONENTS OF PROGRAM Main compo nents are sustained, reliable funding from the Government of Alberta f or the Rural physician Action Plan; adequate infrastructure to support the program; and commitment by university faculty, rural physicians, and communities. CONCLUSION The rural-based educational programs have allowed more than 95% of medical students to gain experience in rural areas.:The number of family medicine residents doing rural rotations h as doubled, and the length of experiences in rural practice has increa sed fourfold. The third-year special-skills training for rural practic e has expanded greatly, and at least 26 of 49 participants have gone o n to enter rural practice. In more than 30 rural Alberta communities, 56 physicians have had an important influence on the training of medic al students and family medicine residents.